Professional beauticians and others skilled in the art of preparing hair for a perming process have been more or less limited, as to a given curl, to a given nominal diameter of the curling implement employed to hold the curl during the curling process. As a result, as to each individual curl, a fairly consistent diameter of the curl along its length is obtained, and this restriction limits the range of styling possibilities which the beautician can employ for a given customer. This is a particular problem for long hair in which, in the typical prior art arrangement, a perm rod is used which consists of a flexible tube of uniform diameter with one end of the tube defining a bore and the opposite end of the tube being provided with a reduced diameter boss. To use the rod, a strand of hair is wound in a spiral pattern around the rod which is then bent into a loop in order that the boss may be inserted into the bore to form a closed circle. Perming chemicals are then applied to set the hair in the usual manner. Those skilled in the art will understand that, if a small diameter tube is used, the curls toward the free end of the hair are too tight, giving a kinky, frizzy look. Conversely, if a larger diameter tube is used, the portion of the hair nearest the scalp roots is too loose and does not lie close enough to the scalp Further, as previously mentioned, the stylistic flexibility available to the user is distinctly limited, being substantially restricted to the selection of a diameter and length of tube used in accordance with the hair length.
Thus, those skilled in the art will appreciate that it would be highly desirable to provide a hair curler system, particularly well adapted for long hair, by which a nominal curl diameter can be incrementally changed along its length such that the beautician can enjoy a much wider range of stylistic possibilities in preparing the hair of an individual for the perming process. It is to these ends that my invention is directed.